Hooded connector for electrical conduits and the like.



. A. MGMURTRIE. HOODED CONNECTOR FOR ELECTRICAL GONDUITS AND THE LIKE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. B. 1908.

Patented Mar. 30, 1909.

witnesses 5% fluorine W M v the following description, in connection with conductors, and

" pluralit .oi sheaths or a sheath and another box.

connective device which will b UNITED sTA' ps i arENT OFFICE.

ADNAH McMURTRIE, or nnwii'onx, Na ASSIGNOR 'ro 'rnoms'a nE'r'rs' COMPANY, OF

NEW-YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION on NEW YORK; HOODED commc'roa FoR-nmcrmcar, connnrrs am) rim 1mm.

No. 916,932. Specification ot-Letterq Patcnt. j Patented March 30, 1909.

Original application filed December 13, 19b7, Serial 1101406261. Divided and thl: application died September 8, 190s. Serial No. 451,940.-

To all whom it may concern: r I electrical, connection, without recourse to Be it known that I, Annan McMmrrnrn, threaded unions 'or destructive set screws of New York, N. Y., have invented certain I normal to the sheaths. Y Improvements in Hooded Connectors for" Another important object of my invention Electrical Conduits and the Like, of which I isso to construct the connective device as to facilitate its application to sheaths in situations. where the use of threaded unions tion, like numerals would be'diliicult to effect, as by reason of nating like parts. the inadequacy of the projecting sheath-end his invention" relates to electrical conduit to receive a (lie, for the formation of a screw and particularly to the connectors or bushthread ofsuflicient length to hold a coupling, ings used at the ends of armor tubes or or where the rotation of one or more of the sheaths to provide a smooth exit'ior, the members is rendered'diflicult or impossible used also to couple or 'conby their angular relation to each other, or nect adjacent conduit members, whether a their confined situation,

instances which occur fre exerience of those skilled n its broadest aspect, In sists of an attachment for s with an abutment to be supported near the periphery of the sheath, and between which and the sheath pla s awedge member, with means to force t e wedge member into drawings, is a specificathe accompanying on the drawings desigrm 0 conduit member 'such as an outlet in the art. By the term sheath as used hereinafter I intend to designate any form of tubular member, whether foi'med as a unitary structure with the conductor, as in the so called armor-ed conductors or having a separate indentity as in the various forms of armor conduit, or=other tubular ||1cml)e|s.

he .expense of providing sheaths with screw threads, the cost of threaded fittings, the expensive labor required to install threaded connectors, and the lack of adaptability of threaded connections to numerous types of sheaths in general use, have made a universal, threadless coupling a desideratum, but many of the devices advanced to meet this need have failed to provide for the requisite grip upon, the sheaths necessary to secure mechanical union, and theabrasive engagement of the conduit members re uisite to -r'nsure electrical connection, w ilc such conii'ctive devices as set screws normal to the periphery of the sheath have proved too powerful an expedient in the hands of the average'workman, and sheaths have been crushed or pierced and the intended protection converted into a positive detriment to insulatioh.

Accordingly, an important object of my present invention is to provid. a form of capable of universal adaptation to the exigencies of electrical house wiring and similar fields, and which embodies the lected for illustrati nand escriptlon as a mechanical features necessary to secure convenient form to enable ready and comstrong physical union of the members to be plete understanding of mi improvements, connected and also the requisite degree oil the part designated byt 0 reference nusheath, thus connecting them mechanically, and preferably electrically.

encric claims upon in has been dirised In my describ fully in the ac companying drawin and specification and pointed out in the c aims.

In the drawings, Figure l shows in side elevation, partly in section, an outlet box of well-known form, and in place thereon a number of connectors in the constructionof which my invention has been embodied; Fig, 2 shows in vertical section a similar connector ap lied to the projecting stub of a pipe too s art to receive an adequate screw thread; Figs. 3, 4 and 5 are views in side elevation, plan, and cross section respectively of a modified form of connector to be described hereinafter in detail.

In the embodim nt of m invention sesubstantially and in many other ently in the daily 1907, from invention conieaths, provided.

wedging relation with the abutment. and

The various features of the invention commoral 1 is an abutment which in accordance with my, invention is supported near the sheath 2 to which my novel attachment is to be secured and which in the instance illustrated is constituted by the spirall wound, tubular metallic sheath of a we known form of armored conductor, the reference numerals 3 and 4 designating the conductors and their insulation respectively.

The support of the abutment may be provided by an suitable means and as one convenient orm of such 'means I have shown u. housing 5 to receive andsurround the end of the sheath 2, forming a seat therefor, the abutment 1 being in this case formed integrally with the housing as a portion of its wall, and preferably slightly inclined relatively to the vertical diameter of the sheath. v

The sheath 2 usually' fits somewhat loosely in the seat 5, and to secure the sheath and attachment together firmly- I provide a wedge member fi'to play between the abutment 1 and the sheath .2; also means 7 to force thewedge member into binding engage-. ment with the sheath and abutment respectively .the wedge member (S and means ust descri d in the instance ustrated a stove bolt of which 6 is the nut and 7 the dral'tjscrew, the shank of the latter passing through a hole 8 in a shoulder -9 orme in the wall of the housing to serve as a base for the'screwhead 10.

In operation, the screw isrotated to the right and draws the wedge member 6 into the converging pocket formed b the abutment and t elghbo wall 0 the sheath 2, such being the stre t of the draft exerused that the nut 6, rid mg upon the inclined abutment l is forced over against the sheath 2 and crowds the latter into binding engage= ment with the seat 5, the nut also cuttmg into the riphery of the sheathand makin electrics connection between. the sheet and the housing, when as I prefer the housis made of metal.

Fig. 1, the attachments are shown in position to secure sheaths to the walls 1 1 and' 12 of an electricaloutlet box, and to facilitate such unions the attachments are illustrated as having integral attaching ortions 13 reduced in diameter to enter t e usual apertures 14 and having threaded necks 15 on which are seated retaining nuts 16, while 17 is a rounded 'protecti ve s oulder to prevent abrasion of the insulation of a conductor.

The length of contact between nut 6 and the sheath not only affords an ample surface for binding engagement but also distributes the strain and prevents un'cture or deformation of the sheath by t e nut}.a characteristic fault accompanying the use of set screws normal to the periphery of the sheath when a plied by an unskilled workman. Fig. -2

' net-rates an instance where this extended the similar parts alrear such pipe stubs, but these devices have been comp icated in construction and unsatisfactory in operation. In this figure, 20 dcsig nates afemale threaded attaching neck or portion to receive the threaded end of a pi pc, and 21 designates u. rounded protective shoulder to prevent abrasion ol' the conductor led thercthrough, the whole forming a very compact, neat housing with the operating parts accessible but unobtrusive. 'lhe abutment is desi mated in this figure by the reference numcra 22, while 23 refers to the wed e member 24 to the draft screw, and 25 to t 0 seat, all similar to parts already described under the same names.

Ihavc illustrated at the right hand side of the outlet box in Fig. 1 two instances where the direction from' which the sheath approaches the box is a factor that rendersdifiicult the connection of the sheath to the box by the ordinary devices available, but thisconncction can be readily effected by means of the special forms of connective devices shown in Fig. l and in the construction of which my invention has been embodied. In the instance of the attachment designated by the reference numeral 26 the neck to which that numeral refers is bent to present the mouth of the housing 27 at an angle of about 45 to the axis of the aperture 28 in the bottom 29 of the box, to which the attaching portion 30 of the device is secured by a nut 31, the abutment 32, bolt 33 and nutdescribed. It is obvious that no attachment requiring rotative agplication to the sheath 35 could be secure in place as conveniently as by-the means embodied in my novel connective device, which makes possible the angularly arranged fitting illustrated. A simrl'arfitting is'shown at 36 where the curvature amounts to 90 and the advantage is still more marked. In this fitti the seat portion 37 is elongated considera l accurate termination of t e sheath 38 as the 34 comes )ondin cxactl in construction to l g f to allow for less,

degree of entrance of the sheath within the housingl does not affect the ease and efliciency with w ich the nut 39 is drawn by the bolt 40 against the abutment 41 and into engagemcnt with the sheath 38 as already described with reference to the other forms of my device. The shoulder '42, attachin neck 43 and retaining nut 44 are also aim: ar to like parts already described.-

In Figs. 3, 4 and 5, I'have illustrated fitting especially adapted for use in situations where it is desirable to draw a conductor outward axially rather than around a bend, this fitting resembling in general con tour that shown at the extreme right of Fig. 1, but a plied to couple a screw threaded armor tu e 52 to a flexible armor tube 53 at an angle of 90. In accordance with my invention the elbow 54 is provided with a removable cap 55 secured by suitable fastening means over an oval a erture 56 through which right line or axia access may be had to the tubes 52 and 53. In the instance illustrated the fastening means takes the form of a screw 57 (see Fig. 5) passing through a plain hole 58 in a lug 59 of the ca 55 into a threaded hole 60 in a lug 61 on t 10 elbow 54, so that when the screw 57 is loosened, the cap can be swung around on the screw as a pivot. A bolt 62 passing through plain oles 63 in the cap lug 64 and elbow lug 65 respectively may also be provided to supplement the screw 57 or in lace of it. lhe tube 52 isshown as screwer directly into the elbow at 66, while the tube 53 is provided with an attachment of the form first herein described and which is coupled to the threaded end 67 of the elbow 54 by a short ring or coupling 68. Other forms of connective devices may be utilized as desired and found suitable with my improved elbow.

Having illustrated and described my in-' vention thus fully andsuitable means for carrying the same into efl'ect, it will be understood that I do not limit myself to the spe cific materials nor tothe specific forms of constructionherein described and illustrated, otherwise than as set forth'in tlieclaims, read in connection with this specification.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent isz- 1. An attachment of the class described; comprising a housing to receive a sheath and provided with an attaching portion anguarly disposed relatively to said sheath receiving portion; said housing having anabutment, a cooperating nut to be wedged between said abutment and sheath, and a draft screw to force said nut intosaid wedging position to secure said sheath and attachment together.

2. An attachment of the class described; comprising a housing having a threaded at-- taclung neck and provided with binding means includin engaging memer thereon; and means to support said actuating memberland bindin member adjacent the path of the article wit which attachment is to be effected, to permit transverse tangential traversal by an actuating member. a an comprising a housing to receive a sheath and havin a threaded neck to pass an aperture in a p ate and arranged to receive a retaining nut upon the o "tion projecting beyond said plate away f1 aid housing; a screw supported on saio .using in transverse relation to said sheath housing; and an engaging member arranged to be moved. tan entially into binding engagement with said s ieath by the rotation of said screw; substantially as described.

4. The combination with an outlet box or conduit member of the class described, having a seat for a tubular sheath ,1 of a binding device comprising a screw provided with a nut, and means to support said screw adjacent said seat with said nut in position to traverse the path of said sheath tangentially upon rotation of said screw to bind said sheath and conduit member together;' substantially as described.

5. The combination with an outlet box or conduit member of a connecting device of the class .described; comprising a seat and a binding device consisting of a screw providcd with a nut, and means to su port said-screw adjacent said seat with said nut in position to traverse the'path of said sheath tan entially upon .rotation of said screw to ind said sheath and connecting devicetogether; substantially as described. j

6. attachment of the class described; comprising a housing having a threaded attachmg neck angularly disposed relatively to said housing; said housing being constructed and arrangedtorec'eive the article to which attachment is to be effected, and having an abutment, a cooperating nut to be wedged between said abutment and sheath, and a draft screw to force said nut into said wed ing position to secure said sheath and attac mentv together; substantially as described.

. Signed at New York in the county and State of New York this third day of August, 1908.

ADNAH McMURTRIE.

Witnesses:

' R. P. HARRISON,

WM. H. MoOoRMIcK. 

